CHARLOTTE – The Charlotte Area Transit System will hold an informational meeting, open to the public, giving updates on what to expect in areas along the 9.3 mile Blue Line Extension that will run from uptown to the University of North Carolina at Charlotte.

The meeting will be held at 6:30 p.m. July 18 in the IKEA Community Room, on the second floor of the IKEA store at 8300 Ikea Boulevard.

According to CATS, demolition has started along the route, which runs from the station at the end of the current light rail line on Seventh Street, between College and Brevard streets, through the NoDa neighborhood and which will terminate at UNCC. The extension will add 11 new transit stops and four new parking facilities, and is estimated to cost around $1.2 billion.

Construction on the light rail line itself won’t begin until 2014, CATS said. The rail line is supposed to be operational by 2017.